OAKLAND, California–After Shohei Ohtani became the first player ever to qualify both as a hitter and pitcher for the league leaders, he spoke of wanting to help his team make some history of its own.
While the two-way superstar said his season was “generally good,” he lamented that it was “against his will” that his Los Angeles Angels missed the postseason for the eighth consecutive season.
“I wish this was the beginning of the real thing and we got onto the real stage (the playoffs). I will do my best to make that happen next year,” he said.
Ohtani started the Angels’ final game of the season against the Oakland Athletics on Oct. 5 in Oakland, California, taking a no-hitter into the fifth inning before giving up a run and being taken out.
After pitching the first inning against the A’s, Ohtani reached the 162-inning minimum required for pitching leaders.
It was the first time Ohtani has hurled 162 innings in a season in his MLB career. He had already reached the 502 plate appearances this season to qualify for batting honors.
Asked about throwing more than 162 innings, Ohtani said after the game, “Normally I don’t attach too much to it.”
But he said he knew he could qualify both as a hitter and pitcher as long as he consistently stayed in the games.
Asked by a reporter what impressed him most this season, Ohtani said, “I’ve forgotten most of the stuff.”
Asked about the Angels’ prospects for next season, he said, “First, if I can be of help to the team depends on if I can achieve a result as good as this year or better than this year or last year. That’s all I can do. Honestly, I can’t do anything about recruiting. So I don’t know about that, but I look forward to the off-season’s developments.”
Asked about his growth as a pitcher this season, Ohtani said that his pitching remained stable because he stayed healthy throughout.
“I can perform much, much better if I continue like that next season and grow more and more,” he said.
Asked about his goal next season, Ohtani said simply, “Winning.”
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